Vacation from our vacation???

Hello!

We survived our first real vacation with Finn and let's just say it was pretty far from relaxing. Not to mention we hit a bit of bad luck including our airline, (and not naming any names, but it rhymes with Schmamerican Shmairlines) BROKE our umbrella stroller on the flight over. And, it wasn't one of those cheapo ones that most people would bring with them on a trip....this was a pricey little number that we loved. We did get to use one of the airlines' loaner strollers. I think we would have been better with rope/duct tape and one of those Smart Carts from the airport. This thing was GHETTO!

In addition to Strollergate, we came to find out that our precious child HATED the water...we're talking pool AND ocean, and would scream bloody murder when getting anywhere near it. The weather was sunny and toasty every day (except for one day when it felt as though the sky was spitting on us and the winds were hurricane-like) so I was at a bit of a loss with what to do in a tropical locale with a water-loathing infant. We managed to take turns keeping him busy (he loved the armoire in our room...seriously?!?!) so I could work on my tan and catch up with my sister or Mark could enjoy some time in the ocean.


Finn's first birthday was spent in this lovely location, but as you can tell from the photo (or at least from the looks on both my and Erin's faces) he was NOT stoked that a flame attached to a large piece of mud pie was presented to him. And, while I am willing to take some of the blame for this in not planning a little bit better the week before we left, Finn didn't get the memo regarding the time difference....that is, the THREE-hour time difference where when he awakes at 7:30am PST, it is actually only 4:30am in Hawaii. We were up before the sun, before the Starbucks AND before the ABC stores opened. Awesome!

But aside from all my complaining, it was nice to get away from the daily grind and to be in such a gorgeous location. Not to mention that we were celebrating one of the biggest milestones in the past 365 days...Finlay Doren Barry is officially a one-year old! He has started walking and we have nicknamed him "Frankenstein" due to the bulging bolts coming out of his neck...just kidding! He resembles the giant monster when he walks with his arms straight out and is enjoying this newfound freedom. He still has a ways to go, but each day he gets more confident and courageous.

Hope all is well and thanks for checking in with us!

Hugs,

Courtney